Hi Taz,
Was in Morzine last month and we had Lionel from http://www.synergie-vtt.fr as a guide. We had a brilliant day.
Took us out from Morzine to Les Get. Used the Mont Chery lift there but that was it for the day until we got back to Morzine.
We went out over Col De L'Encrenaz and Col De La Basse. Plenty of technical riding. He was dishing out the hints and tips all day too.
When we got back to Morzine he then took us for a play on the Super Morzine trails and had us in a bar just before the heavens opened!
We will definitely use him again when (not if) we go back.

I used Lionel (possible same guy as above) from MCF (this was in 2011?) - very good guy, perfect english, good coaching tips

Do a forum search for Lets Gets / Samoens and Col du Cou, buy some maps. The Samoens ride is excellent best I've done in the area. If you can persuade your wife to come and collect you from Samoens (easiest meeting point is large car park by lift station) that would be golden, you can call her from a bar in the town centre that will allow you 30 mins to enjoy some refreshment. Alternatively get a cab to take you back to Joux Plane (note it's a TDF climb if you fancy the up)

Get your family to meet you for lunch at Mont Caly above Les Gets - they can drive up - do it on a nice day the view is spectacular. You take the Mont Chery lift and its a fireroad pedal round - after ulunch you can take red or black back to Les Gets or a bit of XC back to Morzine.

I've just come back from the doing the Passportes and can't see why you'd want to ride the climbs out there when there are lifts. I ride singlespeed in the UK and would never baulk at a climb but riding in the Alps is all about getting the kind of jollies that just aren't available in very great measure in the UK. Climbs from resort level to anywhere with a good view will be anywhere between 1 and 2 hours, which is a big chunk of the 4-5 hours you say you're prepared to be away from the family for. I had a guided day from Morzine three years ago and left the group mid afternoon to do a big climb which I'm glad I did once but I wouldn't bother again. Riding time there is just too precious to waste crawling your way up the hills. This year I took a road bike to satisfy the climbing urge, which it did very nicely.

@Mostly the OP is not suggesting he rides up from the resort, but there is lots of good riding (and imo some of the best riding) which invokes a bit of along and a little up after taking a lift or two - one of the great things is that gets you away from the crowds and the DH crowd. To me getting out there with a map and a sense of exploration is one of the great joys of mtb-ing anywhere. The two routes I quoted use the lifts plus a modest ament of pedalling and Samoens one is the best riding I've done in the area, hats off to STW as I got the route from a thread on here

@Taz it's the same Lionel as Synergier / MCF is same plus its his photo on the homepage !

I'm over there next week too and will be searching out the same sort of thing. Will be taking the lifts up then riding from there looking for off the beaten track stuff like Col de Coux etc. don't mind a bit of climbing to get to the good stuff.
The only difference my wife will be with me riding so we can spend the day chilling on the mountain looking at maps and trails.
Will also have the cx bike with us so we'll get our climbing fix too!

Below is the thread I am referring to, parts of the trail are marked VTT routes which are different from graded PDS trails, more natural singletrack than manufactured. Only slight tricky nav is out of village half way down when double track was quite overgrown so "felt wrong" but soon hooked up with VTT route.

Thanks for sharing that Jambalaya, how would you grade it compared with other stuff out there? I'm thinking about dumping my car in Sameons and riding back up the Col de Joux Plane on my road bike then riding that route off road the following day. However the wife will be with me. She's a good rider but last year she crashed in Italy and broke her elbow so is a little nervous and I don't want to scare her. Also we're going to Bike Verbier the week after Morzine so it'll be good if she stays on this year!

@tollah Respect for the road ride part ! We saw some roadies grinding up and it looked a long hot steep ride !

The mtb ride down isn't overly difficult or technical, it's more flowy. There is one section in the woods which is next to some exposure, I'm no lover of this so I walked that bit whilst my mates had a good laugh at my expense. This video is pretty representative. The riding in Verbier is generally more full on than this route.

Col de Cou only has snow at the first part of the ridge and is easily navigated, there are more 'obstacles' to slow bikes, which does make it less fun than it was the first time I did it unhindered, also they have but a fair few steps in on the once technical descents, there are some lovely switchbacks which remain though, still a nice ride out.

ETA by obstacles nothing sinister just some narrow poles to pass through and turnstiles!!

Col de Cou was fine. We did it last week and there's only a bit of a carry over the snow. Met a guide (sian from endless ride) who I'd ridden with 10 years ago on the summit! Had a good run down there through to Morzine through some excellent rooty sections in the woods.

We took maps and a guidebook (yellow one very good) and ended up doing a lot of carrying through snow etc but it was ace. Lots of fun working it our for yourself. There's a descent called 'Jenkins' that is without doubt one of the best I've ever done. Miles from anywhere (long pull back into Chatel to get back) but awesome and never saw another MTB once we'd got away from the bike parks.

Am I right in thinking I have a heafty climb / push up the fire road from the lake to reach the ride to pick up the decent you guys are all raving about? (More than happy to do the climb but wanted to confirm my thinking was correct to avoid mis navigation)

Thanks for all the help mate. Figured it out when I spotted the cross as I cycled over from the top of the Les Gets on the road from The Nauchettes lift

Superb run down to Samoens. Has a bit of everything

Need to figure out how to get back for 2nd helpings in the next 3 days now.

For anyone else reading. I have been to the PdS 5 times now. Past 4 have been the marked DH runs (which is also superb). It has so much more to offer than that. Sorry if I am stating the obvious but with a little effort there is a lot of sweet off piste to be had.

Well booked a last minute trip and a couple of us are heading to Les Gets next Weds. Trying to rapidly get out head round such a HUGE area which is pretty mind boggling.

Have Col de Cou and Samoens on the list, but if anyone has any maps info or these gpx files they can send this would be massively appreciated? Need to get my head round how GPX works and how it's used... I guess it's mapped on smart phone?

I take it signposts aren't too common, so hoping we'll find enough of the singletrack goodness as well as the more common trails.

Been flat out since we came back, great trail, thanks for the heads up. Myself and the wife parked the car in Samoens and rode back to Morzine over the Col de Joux Plan on our CX bikes, then the next day took the lifts up from Les Gets and rode to the lac then onto the cross before heading down into Samoens to get the car and some nice lunch